Come The Morning
by Magenta's Nightmare
Summary: Merle meets a woman in need of help and things get interesting pretty fast. This is a smutty, naughty Merle oneshot basically. I'm not great at summaries. lol
1. Chapter 1

_**Come the morning...**_

It was hot enough to fry an egg on the hood of his truck and the heat waves taunted him down the road. He needed something cold to drink and fast. All Merle wanted after a day in the hot sun was to get home to his little farmhouse and crack open one of the nice cold beer that sat next to him on the seat.

His whole body was sticky and a deep golden brown color from working the entire last month outdoors. He wiped more sweat from his brow as he slowed to a stop at a red light. This little town had only a few traffic lights but he was catching every single one.

Merle couldn't wait to be home, alone and steadily getting more drunk. He'd been working long days in the hot sun for weeks doing roofing.

He was just about to take his foot off the break when his head damn near hit the windshield and his beer slid off the seat and onto the floor of his truck. He heard the crunching of his bumper as a car from behind him impacted with it.

"What the fuck?" he growled.

Merle saw red and he bolted from the truck, angrier than he'd been in ages. He was hot, tired, hungry and ready to put his feet up but some idiot had to go and ruin those plans.

He approached the little VW Rabbit behind him, that didn't even look like it should be on the road.

"What the hell are you thinkin' woman?" he hollered.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed, climbing out of the car and surveying the damage.

The young woman was breathing heavy and he just stood and stared at her trying to figure her out. She was in denim cut offs and a short sundress, he wanted to keep screaming but she was cute as hell and obviously upset.

"Please...I...I can't even pay for this...fuck!"

She was pacing the gravel road and looked like she might hyperventilate.

"Hey, darlin' calm yourself now, sorry I yelled. It's just a fender bender."

"It isn't...you don't understand! I need to get out of town!"

"You on the lamb or something, honey?" he asked with a smirk.

"I need to get out of here...can you help me? I'll do anything!"

She was panting in desperation and scared, he could see it in her eyes. Something about the tone of her voice said she needed someone's help and that it was serious.

"Your car will run still...just follow me, OK?"

"Where?"

"I got a farm. You need to get outta sight for a bit?"

"Yes, please. I need help."

"Follow me then, I got ya."

He got in his truck and wondered what the hell possessed him but she needed somebody so why not him?

He drove slow enough for her to follow and the sun was starting to set already. He didn't even know this girl's name. He said the word 'girl' in his mind cause he was 40 and he'd bet millions she wasn't even 30.

He turned off the highway, just a few miles out of town, onto the grid that lead to his house and he didn't know what the hell he'd do with her when he got there.

He had extra rooms but he was always alone. Helping a young woman just felt like the right thing to do but he couldn't deny he was attracted to her body, her face and her desperation. A part of him wanted to pretend he had no ulterior motives but he did.

He looked behind him at the gathering dust and her headlights came on, flooding the hot summer air with light. She was following him into the dark like he was her savior but for all she knew he was a dangerous man who meant to hurt her. He wondered what she was running from that made her so eager to follow a stranger.

He turned off the grid onto the long driveway that lead to his home and he waited for her at the end of the driveway.

She pulled up and killed the engine of her ugly little car.

"I'm sorry...I didn't mean to hit your truck but...I'm scared and I'm not thinking straight."

"Tell me what's going on, maybe I can help ya," he said, trying to calm her.

"Nobody can help me," she sobbed.

"Hey now, honey...come here," he offered and she fell into his arms, much to his surprise. "Do we have to call the police? Is somebody hurtin' you, darlin'?"

"Please don't call the police...I'll run, I swear to god!"

"Alright, honey! You gotta be straight with me now. What's your story?"

"I need to get away from this town. There's a man here who won't leave me alone...he's a cop."

"Jesus! A cop?" he asked, wondering which of the local pigs was messing with her.

"He's scares me...he tried to force me into something and he controls my every move. He's obsessive as fuck and he's got an ugly temper."

"Come inside then, you stayin' for a while?"  
"Please, I'll leave as soon as I can. I need to get out of this town."

He brought her inside and offered her a beer from the cold ones he brought in. Two of them were smashed on the floor mats of his truck but he'd deal with it tomorrow.

"Have a beer, girl, calm yourself down a bit. Nobody's gonna get ya with me around."

"Why are you helping me?" she asked, twisting off the cap of the bottle of beer and taking a long sip.

"I'm just the hero type, what can I say?" he laughed. It was a rough and gravely sounding laugh but he let it out and just enjoyed the ridiculous situation he was in.

She sat down at his kitchen table and he watched her drink and eye him like she was on high alert.

"Why haven't I seen you around anyway, where are you from?" he asked.

"I'm from another town a few hours away that nobody's ever heard of...it doesn't even matter. I only came here for a job and it's been a fucking nightmare."

He nodded and got up to walked into his bedroom for a new shirt that wasn't wet with perspiration. He caught her looking at his body as he pulled the undershirt over his head and then pulled the gray t shirt on after.

"Don't get no ideas, I'm too old for you," he grinned and sat back on the couch to drink his beer. "So tell me all about the bad man you're running from."

"He's the chief of police and he said he'll make me disappear if I ever leave. His wife doesn't know he's after me...my life is a mess."

"What the fuck? When I get myself into trouble I really go all in, don't I?" he sighed.

"I'm sorry...I don't know what to do. I swear he'd kill me if he found me, please don't let him find me..."

"If I'm risking my life for you can I get your name at least?" he asked.

"Trinity."

"It would be something all deep and fucking meaningful like that, wouldn't it? So are you the mother, the daughter and the holy ghost?"

"Huh?" she asked.

"Heaven help me," he groaned.

"What's your name?" she asked, taking the last sip of her beer and looking for another. He nodded at her from the couch to take another.

"Name's Merle Dixon."

"Do you live here alone?" she asked.

"Yep."

She had innocent looking eyes but he wanted all the back story before he became her guardian angel.

"How'd you get messed up with the chief of police then, sweetheart? I gotta hear this."

"I was the nanny for his kids. How old is that story?" she shrugged.

"So he decided he wanted more for what he was payin' ya?"

"Exactly, but he never got it. He started to get all pissy and called me a cock tease. He said if I didn't start putting out he'd make my life hell. The man is a lunatic."

"He won't get anywhere near ya so you can relax."

"I can?" she asked, looking surprised at his nonchalance.

"Nobody in town ever bothers me all the way out here. Stay as long as ya like and I won't even try anything, unless you want me to," he laughed.

"You have no idea what this means to me, thank you."

"You're legal right? I'm not gonna get busted for harboring a juvenile runaway, am I?" he asked, apprehensively.

"Hell no, I'm 25. I just got in a stupid position with a man who has sway in this town. I'm not a kid or anything."

"Hey, I'm just checkin'."

He got up and turned on the central air to cool the place down and opened another beer.

"It's hot in here!" he groaned.

She was still sat at the table and watching every single move he made.

"Why you staring at me?" he asked.

"Sorry," she said, pulling a pack of smokes from her shorts and lighting one.

"No, what is it?" he pressed.

"I've noticed you, up on the town hall roof. You're always there in the hot sun with no shirt on."

"And?" he asked, wondering what she was getting at.

"And I like to watch you working."

"Oh...you into older dudes?" he winked.

She stood up and took a long drag of her cigarette and all of a sudden he was silent and clueless as she walked toward him.

"No, I'm not into old dudes, I'm into men," she answered.

"Why do I get the feeling you're all kinds of trouble?" he asked as she came to stand right in front of him.

"Maybe you have good instincts," she answered softly.

"You don't have to fuck me to stay here, honey. I was gonna let you stay no matter what."

"I know...that's why I want to fuck you."

"Jesus! You look pretty sweet and innocent to me. I don't want to get you all sinned up," he laughed, but his eyes drifted all over her body.

"Try me," she whispered and pulled her dress up to start taking off her jean shorts.

"You go pretty fast there, sweetheart. You wanna try going slow?"

"Slow?"

"Yeah...slow."

He got up and nodded toward his bedroom and she followed.

"You lay down right there, honey," he said, calmly.

She started to squirm out of her dress and he stopped her.

"Jesus, woman! You never done this slow?"

"What are you talking about? We have to take our clothes off, don't we?"

"Not yet we don't," he answered, turning off the lights and laying down next to her.

She rolled over toward him and grabbed his dick through his pants and he jumped a little.

"What?" she asked.

"I got some things I wanna show ya first."

Merle knelt over her body, knowing he probably shouldn't touch her. She didn't seem to know much about nice sex but she definitely wanted to get laid.

He lay his forearms on either side of her head and very slowly kissed her lips. He felt her shudder beneath him and he got the impression that she wasn't half as wild as she thought.

"You don't owe me nothing. You wanna just go to sleep, honey?"

She looked up into his eyes and she could feel it in his touch and his voice, he wasn't going to hurt her. She thought of the smoke breaks when she had watched him working. His strong body working at twice the speed of the men half his age. She imagined him naked so many times and now hitting his truck on the way out of town had landed her underneath him. She half expected him to have her naked by now and be balls deep inside her but he was still just looking into her eyes.

"Kiss me," she uttered.

He took her face and kissed her mouth passionately. Merle had been single for ages and the one horse town he was stuck in had very little for single women in his age group. It had been over two years since he'd kissed anyone and he couldn't resist her mouth.

"Where's your family, baby girl?" he asked, moving his kisses to her neck.

"I only ever had my mom...she's dead."

"You got nobody?" he asked.

"No," she answered, pulling his mouth to her neck and rolling her hips toward him.

He took her hand in his and kissed her fingers softly, it was such a simple thing but it blew her mind. Nobody had ever kissed her fingertips in her whole life.

Merle moved his lips from her hands to her wrists and then up her arms to her shoulders.

"You're so pretty, honey."

"No, I'm not," she answered.

Merle stopped and just held her in his arms, breathing heavily against her neck. She waited a moment and then asked why he stopped.

"I'm not so sure we should do this. I don't wanna mess with you after some asshole's been pressuring you for sex, it don't seem right. There's three rooms in this house...you sleep anywhere you like and stay as long as you want."

"Merle, I have been messed with, you're right about that, but does that make me damaged goods?"

"Course not, but it ain't right for me to take advantage."

Trinity lay on her side, touched his face and kissed him softly.

"Nobody ever did it slow and nice...I need you to show me that it can be like that."

He knew she actually wanted it and he'd be a damn fool not to take her up on it. He was already up to his neck in trouble with the chief of police if he ever caught wind that she was with him, he may as well dive right in.

"You promise me you'll say stop if you need to?"

"I promise."

He pulled her into his arms again and continued to kiss her hands and then slowly up her arms again.

"I know you probably won't stay here with me but don't let anyone hurt you again, OK? You be careful, wherever you go."

She couldn't answer, she almost started to cry in fact.

Nobody cared if she was hurt in so long she couldn't remember.

Merle held her face in his hands and kissed her lips like she should be kissed, gently and with purpose. She'd likely be gone in the morning and he knew it but he wanted her to know what she deserved before she left.

Lost young women like Trinity didn't stay put and they rarely had a reason to but he wanted to be the one man in her life who didn't push and gave her something in return for once.

"That's so nice," she whispered as he lay his hand on her stomach and licked her ear lightly. "Nobody ever touched me like this."

"Then it's about time someone did," he insisted. "This is how a man's supposed to touch a woman."

He kissed down her body gently and moved her dress up off of her stomach. He licked at her navel almost imperceptibly and she lifted her body to his mouth.

"Please...Merle...please..."

"What do you want, honey?"

She undid her jean shorts and pushed them down and then reached for his face, pulling it to her mouth.

He kissed her lips and let his hand move down between her legs.

He touched her so lightly that she needed more.

He teased her and before long she found herself grasping at his body desperately.

"Hold up now...slow..." he grinned, taking her hands and holding them over her head. She moaned and closed her eyes.

Merle held her hands up but with absolutely no pressure and teased his tongue across her chest.

"What are you doing?" she sighed.

"You want me to stop?"

"Uh uh...show me everything you know," she pleaded.

Merle wanted her body but he wasn't rushing it for anything. He sat back on his knees and looked down at her for a beat and then pulled his gray t shirt over his head.

"Good lord!" she moaned.

He grinned at her and tried to imagine her watching him working and getting hot about it, he could hardly believe it.

She sighed and reached her hands out to touch his chest and he let her, for a moment, before lifting her hands up over her head again. He held her hands there with only one of his and let his other hand drifted all over her body so slow it was killing her.

Trinity had never been with a man in bed for this long with her panties still on. Merle was touching her lightly through the material, making her squirm all over his hot sheets.

"More...please..."

"Patience..." he insisted and then began kissing from her ankle up to her knee.

"This is murder!" she whined.

He chuckled and kept ascending her leg to her thighs.

He had let her hands go but she still kept them over her head, surrendering to his process.

She had a feeling even before tonight that he knew how to take control and please a woman, there was a quiet confidence about him as she watched him work.

She started to tremble then as he nudged her knees apart and kissed her through her underwear.

Against her wishes, she released a whimper that was dripping with need.

"I already want it...why are you doing this so me?"

"I just wanna see how badly I can make you want it," he noted.

He pressed his lips to the crotch of her panties then and breathed his hot breath through the material. She'd never felt anything like it. His hot breath between her legs and the sweet pressure of his mouth against her was all out torture.

She moved her hands down to her hips and started to push her panties down her legs.

"Had enough, hey?" he inquired.

"I can't take it anymore!"

"I got so much more for ya though," he grinned.

"Give it to me then," she sighed. "You're really pushing my limits though."

"That's the idea, turn over."

She did as he asked and he licked slowly up the back of her legs all the way to her bare ass and she hissed loudly.

"God damn it!" she whined.

Her feet were crossed at the ankle and he got the impression that she wanted him to take control so he did. He slid his hand between her knees and pushed one leg slowly open.

With one leg straight and one open to the side, she lay on her belly knowing she'd never be the same again after that night. The anticipation left her with a prickly, tingly feeling all over her body.

He finally touched her from behind as he pushed her dress up and kissed her back.

"Jesus Christ, Merle!" she groaned.

His fingers slipped all over her wet folds and she couldn't care less that he knew how hot he'd made her. He should be proud of what he'd done to her, nobody ever got to her like this.

He pushed the dress up over her head at last and then unfastened her bra, tossing it on his floor.

"Nah...stay like that a minute," he whispered when she moved to roll over.

He slid his hands beneath her chest and took hold of her breasts and went after her neck with his hot mouth. She could feel one of his knees, high up between her thighs, and she ground herself against it desperately.

"Merle...please..."

"What do ya want?" he asked, although he knew damn well what she wanted. He just wanted to hear her say it.

"Fuck me...I need you to fuck me."

"I will, but not yet. I don't think you ever had anybody make love to you properly and I wanna do that before you disappear and I never see you again. You deserve to have someone take care of you, honey."

He rolled her onto her back and kissed her again, wrapping her up in his big arms.

For at least five minutes he just kissed her and it messed with her mind. She ran her fingers through his hair and pulled him down to her mouth hard.

"Please..." she tried again.

He didn't answer her, he just moved his attention down to her lower stomach and waited for her to move her legs apart.

"You don't have to," she began.

"I want to, you got a problem with it or something?"

"No, just you've already done so much for me."

"Hush..." he insisted and then kissed her wet lips softly.

Her legs twitched at the sensation of his mouth on her pussy.

He could sense some tension in her still and suspected that whoever did this last wasn't so gentle. She pulled her knees up and held them close together and her arms were laying over her face.

"I ain't gonna hurt you...you can relax a bit."

She took a deep breath and let her legs lay open against his bed sheets.

"There ya go," he whispered.

He trailed his tongue up one side of her lips and then down the other and she started to breath heavier and deeper. He'd go from soft but direct attention to her clit right to open mouthed kisses on her inner thighs until she was blind with lust.

"Please...Merle...I can't..." she whined.

"Alright, hold onto something then."

She raised up on her elbows to look down at his face as he slid his finger into her and closed his lips around her clit. He moved his finger toward her belly in an evil little _come here_ gesture and then licked back and forth across her clit. She'd never seen anything so hot in her entire life and it broke her.

Her legs lay completely open and her hips rolled toward his mouth as her head fell back.

"Fuuuuuck!" she cried out. "Mmmmm...fuck...oh god..."

He drank it in but eased up on the contact as she lay panting and spent.

Merle lay down next to her and watched her come back to reality.

"That was amazing," she said finally.

"Glad ya liked it," he chuckled, adjusting the pillow under his head.

Before he knew it she was up on her knees and undoing his belt.

"What's all this?" he grinned.

She didn't answer, she just unzipped his jeans and started to yank them down.

He was hard as hell but he wasn't so desperate that he was expecting her to go all the way if she wasn't up to it, but she was apparently up to it.

"You sure?" he checked.

"Yes, get your boxers off," she panted.

He had a feeling that slow wasn't her thing and he was right. She ducked down the second his boxers were off and took his dick in her hand and started to lick up and down his length.

It was fast but it felt great and soon he was groaning and just wanted to get inside her. He threaded his fingers through her auburn hair and tried not to thrust into her hot, hungry mouth. His legs got stiff and started to shake, she had him right on the edge already.

"I'm gonna cum, honey."

She stopped then and crept over his body and lay her legs on either side of his hips. Trinity looked down into his eyes and slid down on his dick.

He hissed and grabbed her ass in his rough, work worn hands.

"Jesus, girl!" he growled. It didn't feel real. So soft and tight and hot.

"Like that?" she grinned.

"Fuuuuck me, honey. You ride it out..."

She fucked him fast, it seemed to be her style and it felt like heaven. He was completely under her spell and he tried to commit to memory the way her hair was falling over her pretty face.

He wanted to remember everything about her, the sound of her moaning his name, the taste of her skin...everything.

Very soon he couldn't take it anymore and he pleaded with her to get off before he came inside her and they had a real problem. She waited till he was a heartbeat away and then moved down to take him in her mouth as he let go. He was shocked but went with it cause it felt so good.

There was silence afterward and he didn't touch her. He wasn't entirely sure how he felt about what he'd done. A young woman seeking help probably didn't need to be fucked by a stranger but yet he didn't think he'd hurt her in any way.

"Are you alright?" he asked, looking over at her. She was still laying with her arms over her face and breathing slow. There was a little, mysterious smile across her lips and then she turned her head to focus on him.

"I'm fine, you?"

"Did I just take advantage of you?" he asked.

"No...you showed me the light. I'm OK, I swear."

He pulled up the blanket to cover her up and she pulled his arm over her but he didn't expect her to still be there in the morning. He was a heavy sleeper and he was sure he wouldn't hear her slip out of his house at dawn so he kissed the back of her neck once more before he fell asleep. Come the morning, he was positive she'd be just a sweet memory but he hoped she'd remember him too.

############################################################

I don't know...more? or is it good like this?

Thanks for reading! Teagan XOXO

I had a very stressful day yesterday and this just popped in my head.


	2. Chapter 2

Merle rolled over in bed and he was alone, just like he knew he would be. There was a note and he wasn't surprised by that, she seemed pretty sweet and he figured she'd say goodbye somehow. He picked it up off the night stand and read it, laying on his back.

 _ **I wish I could have stayed. You made me feel so amazing, and it wasn't just the sex. I don't want to get out of your bed, I wanted to stay with your arm around me forever but this will bring you nothing but trouble as long as Greg is after me. I can't bring you problems after everything you did for me. I won't forget you.**_

 _ **Trinity. Xoxox**_

Even though he knew she wouldn't be there it still stung. He had hoped in the back of his mind that she'd stay. He liked her.

Merle had to keep going and try to forget about the smell of her hair on his pillow. He had no idea when he'd kiss anyone again and almost didn't want to wash her off his skin that morning.

Why she affected him the way she did was a complete mystery but there it was. He couldn't hope to just sleep with a woman like her and then carry on without it lingering in his mind and heart.

She needed help and he kept thinking he should have tried harder to get her to stay. Maybe she was out there on the road alone and needing help, he'd never know.

He got out of the shower and into his work clothes and then notice her lighter was still on his kitchen table so he picked it up and put it in his pocket.

After a cup of coffee he walked to his truck but it felt robotic, he was just putting one foot in front of the other.

Meeting Trinity and spending the night with her just brought it home that he'd been lonely in the first place. Knocking around his old farmhouse every night drinking was the band aid on the real issue that he had nobody. He wouldn't trade the night with her for anything but he knew it would haunt his memory as well.

He fired up his truck with the dented bumper that he ran his hand across before he got in and headed out for the day. He hit the grid road and drove toward the highway remembering her headlights in his rear view mirror.

He turned onto the highway toward the little town he'd always known and then he saw something that made his blood run cold.

A town cop was pressing Trinity's body to the hood of his cruiser. The woman he'd been holding just the night before was handcuffed and being frisked by a man with a smirk across his lips. It was probably 90 degrees already and he imagined her skin burning against the car.

Whatever they were bringing her in for was surely bullshit and he had to do something to get her out before the chief got his hands on her.

She didn't see him as he passed and his mind raced with thoughts of how to help her and what that asshole had in mind for her. There were too many questions.

Why had she still been in the area? Did he have enough money for bail? Could he find a way to keep her safe long term?

He got to work and cried off sick for the day and since he was foreman of the crew he could get away with it.

Merle drove straight to the town jail and asked about her at the front desk.

"She's here for possession of marijuana. Her bail is set at $2500, that's standard for this charge."

"I'll pay it. I want her out of here."

"Fine, you can pay that upstairs at the teller."

He paid her bail and waited for her at the front desk but he had to wait for over an hour for some reason.

When she finally appeared she had been crying, that much was plain.

He didn't say a word to her and she just stared at the ground. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and took her to his truck. The police were holding her vehicle to search it and he suspected it was also so she wouldn't have a way to leave.

He started to drive her back to his place and he waited for her to say something but she just stared at her hands. Finally he had to say to her just what he was thinking.

"You didn't have any drugs...I know that."

"How?"

"I just do, he was just looking for a reason to hold you here. There's only one thing I don't get."

"What's that?"

"You left, and it must have been early in the morning...why were you still around here?"

She sat for a moment and pulled her cigarettes out of the brown envelope fill with her possessions they'd given her at the jail but she didn't have her lighter.

"Here," he said, handing it back to her.

She lit her smoke and then looked at him through her dark hair.

"I came back for you."

"You did?"

"Yeah...I couldn't bear the idea of not seeing you again. I thought maybe we could work something out but look at this mess."

"We can. Just don't run off again."

He finally arrived back at the farmhouse and pulled her into his arms.

"This man is dangerous and we need to prove that to the powers that be. Did you see him today?"

"Yes, he laughed at me and called me stupid for not leaving when I had the chance. That asshole had them strip search me for drugs! He'll know you posted bail and it's going to mean trouble for you."

"Fuck it. You know what?"

"What?"

"I like you, hell, maybe I already love you and if it means losing everything I got I won't let him hurt you."

"What about this bogus charge and the court date I have?"

"We gotta keep you in the house and safe for a bit but...maybe we could just run away."

She smiled at his fanciful idea.

"Where to?"

"Anywhere...we could just up leave in the middle of the night and he'd never find you."

"You can't just give up your job and your home, Merle."

"Did you mean what you wrote to me this morning or was that just a bunch of nonsense to let me down easy?"

"I never meant anything more," she answered.

"Then we can't let anything keep us apart. I got nobody, just like you, and maybe I'm dreaming but I can see me and you being happy together if you want me."

"Me too and I do want you...I need you," she whispered.

Trinity sat down on his couch, she never thought she'd be in his house again. She didn't know what love really was or how you decided you'd known someone long enough but she felt that she loved him.

The way he touched her and kissed her brought something to life deep inside that hadn't been able to live before he touched her.

"I saw you being held down by that asshole on the side of the highway there and I swear I could have killed him."

Trinity never had anyone feel compelled to fight for her, never mind kill for her, and she couldn't help loving it.

"Come here, honey," he called from the kitchen table.

She got up and walked over to where he sat, wrapped her arms around his neck and settled her weight onto his lap.

"We'll figure this all out," he insisted.

"I hate to bring you trouble, Merle."

"Hey now, this ain't your fault. I won't let nothin' happen to ya."

"I didn't get very far this morning before I realized that there's nobody like you anywhere, I have to be with you."

"Good, cause I ain't letting you go."

He kissed her hard and pulled her lips closer with his big hand on the back of her neck. He could feel her submit to his touch completely, she trusted him already and he trusted her.

She slithered off of his lap slowly and knelt down on the floor between his knees. He just looked at her in disbelief...she couldn't be real.

"What are you doing to me?" he asked as she lay her cheek against his knee and looked up at him.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I only just met you and already I'd walk through fire for you."

Trinity was overwhelmed by his words, nobody ever risked anything for her. This was the man she'd been watching for weeks and thinking about in her most private moments saying this, she'd never wanted anyone so much. His strength and his voice made her feel so safe and he knew just what her body needed, he was perfect.

She moved her hands up his thighs and crept further between his legs.

"You'll be the death of me, honey," he sighed, laying his hand on her head as she brought her face to his stomach.

"Tell me you're my man," she whispered, pressing her face to his chest.

"I'm all yours, honey, you got me."

She grinned up at him and lay her hands on his belt buckle and went to work getting his pants open.

Merle was going from endless nights of loneliness, drinking and jerking off to having a beautiful younger woman kneeling before him with her eyes full of promise.

She pulled his throbbing hard dick from his pants and started to jerk it slow but firm as she kissed his stomach and teased him with her mouth.

He watched as her tongue drifted over the head of his cock and he had to close his eyes as the sight burned him and flooded his mind with desire.

"Damn it, honey, you're too good to me."

Just then she took his dick deeper into her hot mouth and he moaned and ran his fingers onto her dark brown hair. He could feel her tongue sliding over the head of his dick every time she reached it and then teasing the base as she took him back into her mouth.

Her hand moved up under his shirt and her fingertips ghosted over his nipples as she continued sucking him off.

"Mmmm...god damn it, girl..."

He couldn't take it much longer but he wanted to do it up right, he wasn't wasting this moment.

He touched her cheek and leaned down to kiss her and get her mouth off his cock before he blew his load.

He forced his tongue past her teeth and claimed her mouth. Pulling her to her feet, he back her into the kitchen counter and grabbed her hips.

"I gotta have you," he growled.

"I'm yours," she panted.

He snatched her up and dropped her ass on the counter in one swift motion. Yanking and pulling with ferocity he had her topless in record time.

He held his hands to her bare back and teased his tongue over one nipple and then the other.

"No more slowness?" she teased.

"This ain't no time for slow," he growled.

He sucked at her skin and took her breast into his mouth reveling in the taste of her.

Merle knew her body and she had no idea how, the way he moved his tongue and the level of force he used was never too much.

She felt completely comfortable letting him take over and surrendered her body to him.

He grabbed her ass in his hands and yanked her body to the edge and against his hard dick. She needed to get skin to skin contact so she hopped off the counter to get her shorts off and before she could blink he was on his knees.

Lifting her left leg onto his shoulder, he pulled her pussy to his mouth with his hands on her hips.

She grabbed onto the counter behind her to stop herself sinking down to the floor.

"Oh my god...Merle...Mmmm..."

He turned his head a little to the right and slipped his tongue between her lips and her knees buckled.

He teased her entrance over and over until she was pulling his mouth closer in desperation.

"You taste like heaven, girl," he groaned as he pulled his mouth back just fast enough to look up at her face and wink.

Her head fell back and he dove right back onto it, sucking her clit so softly she rolled her hips toward his mouth chasing more of the sensation. He slid his fingers into her and she gasped at the intensity of both forms of sweet torture. His tongue and his fingers could perform miracles.

She started to crack and it was hard to stay standing. He took hold of her ass and his wet lips drifted back and forth across hers until she started to whine out her pleasure into the old farmhouse kitchen.

"Yes...ohhhhh fuck...Mmmmm..."

She was panting heavily and the moment she was able to she started to reach for him to pull him close. He scooped her up and plopped her back on the counter. He thrust into her so fast she was still pulsating from her orgasm.

He took her mouth again and she could taste herself all over his lips. He face was wet with her fluid and they shared the taste of it without a care in the world.

He drove into her hard and she fell weak again the cabinets letting him do what he did best. The man knew how to fuck like she didn't think possible.

After a few minutes she began to feel overwhelmed by her feelings and she clung to him, afraid of ever losing this...of losing him.

"I love you...Merle, I swear to god I love you..." she breathed.

He didn't answer but he kissed her again and pushed his tongue deep into her mouth as he moaned and came into her.

He grunted and threaded together some profanity and blasphemy for good measure before collapsing against her chest.

Out of breath and emotionally overcome he wrapped his arms tightly around her waist with his face buried in her breasts.

Finally, he raised his eyes to meet hers, "I love you, honey...and I'm gonna keep you safe if it's the last thing I do."


	3. Chapter 3

They hid from the world all day. He just took her to his bed and held her. She had only the clothes on her back since her suitcase was in her car so she spent the day in one of his t shirts and a pair of his boxers. She was barefoot and casual and he wanted to keep her with him in his house forever but he had no idea what the future would hold for them. It was still like a dream just to touch her.

"Is this crazy?" she asked.

Her head was resting on his chest and she was running her hand slowly up and down his arm.

"Maybe. I never loved anyone like this before so I got nothin' to compare it to."

"Me neither, people would say you can't love someone this fast."

"They can say what the fuck they want, I love you and I know it."

She smiled and cuddled in closer to him.

He knew that there was no way it could possibly go smoothly. He'd never even met the chief of police. Merle kept to himself and kept his nose clean but she'd been so afraid of him that she was running scared.

With no idea who he was up against, he decided to ask more questions.

"What does this prick even look like?" he asked. "I hate to bring it up but I just wanna know more about this. I don't even know who I'm protecting you against."

"He's tall and thin with a stupid mustache and he wears ridiculous cowboy boots and a brown stetson. By the way his wife acted I think he knocks her around, that man is evil."

"I've seen that guy around, I might have to go clean his clock for him."

"I wish he'd just go away, I don't want any trouble," she sighed.

"You ain't got any trouble. I'm gonna take care of it for you. "

"How?"

"Not a fucking clue but he ain't getting anywhere near you as long as I'm around."

They finally got up and he cooked her supper. She was impressed that he could make homemade chili and she ate two bowls full ravenously.

"That's the best food I ever had. How are you perfect at everything?" she grinned.

He chuckled and kissed her forehead. He'd never had anyone so beautiful look at him this way, she made him feel like a king.

She insisted on washing up the dishes and told him to sit and put his feet up with a cold beer.

"I can't believe I only just met you, it feels like you were always supposed to be here with me," he mused, watching her tidying his kitchen.

"Maybe I was," she laughed. "Do you believe in fate, Merle?"

"Never thought about it much but you might be on to something. Like maybe we was together in a past life or something?" he joked.

"Who knows?" she smiled.

Her eyes were a funny, light shade of green and he felt entrapped every time he looked into them too long. She owned him already.

She finished up in the kitchen and wandered around his living room looking at his pictures and records.

"Those are all really old," he said as she flipped through them.

They were his dad's old records and none of them was newer than the 1980s and most were older.

Roy Orbison, Elvis, Pasty Cline he had all kinds of old music.

She kept flipping through them and then she grinned widely.

"What'd ya find, honey?" he asked.

"Close your eyes," she insisted.

"You're a goofy girl, you know that?" he grinned but he played along.

He could hear her taking the record out and putting it on the old record player they'd owned since he was a teenager.

He wondered what the hell she'd play out of all those oldies and then it began and he laughed to himself.

 _There'll be no strings to bind your hands  
Not if my love can find your heart  
And there's no need to take a stand  
For it was I who choose to start  
I see no need to take me home  
I'm old enough to face the dawn_

"Dance with me," she whispered, holding out her hand to him.

"Seriously?" he asked, feeling kinda silly.

"Come on," she insisted.

 _Just call me angel of the morning, angel  
Just touch my cheek before you leave me  
Oh my baby  
Just call me angel of the morning, angel  
Then slowly turn away from me_

He gave in and took her in his arms and she melted into him. Merle hadn't dance with anyone since high school but it felt nice. She lay her hands on his lower back and pressed her face to his chest.

Having someone in his house just for company would have been nice enough but here he was with the prettiest girl he'd ever seen and she wanted him of all people.

He held her as they moved almost imperceptibly to the music and he buried his face in her hair and closed his eyes. He pretended that everything was OK and that he wasn't on the verge of having a huge conflict with the police chief. He didn't know how to handle it, how to protect her or anything else but for now he just wanted to enjoy the moment.

Of all the men in the world she could be with, she wanted to be in his arms and he wasn't about to take that for granted so he breathed in the smell of her skin and kissed her.

He knew he'd have to leave her in his house to go to work the next day and it made him nervous. By the time they settled into his bed he'd thought of a few ideas to keep her safer.

"You ever fired a gun?"

"Yes, why?"

"I got one and I'm leaving it with you tomorrow. I don't want you to leave the house and I'm gonna get you something else to wear tomorrow when I'm in town."

"This is insane to have to live like this, I'm so sorry."

"Forget about that. Until we sort this out I'm just gonna keep you safe. I need to figure out how deal with this asshole and we might have to leave here still."

"I hope not, you can't just uproot your whole life for me."

"I'd do it in a heartbeat," he insisted.

 **########################**

The next morning he got up and left her sleeping in his bed while he got a coffee and took a shower.

Before he left, he knelt down next to the bed and woke her up.

She smiled at him like she'd been waiting years to see him and he still wasn't used to it.

"Hey," she said, reaching for him.

He kissed her and had to resisted her pulling him into bed with her.

"Honey, wait you gotta listen to me."

"OK," she relented.

"You take this and don't let it out of your sight," he said, handing her his pistol. "You know how to use it?"

"Yeah, I'm good."

"You lock the door and don't answer it for anybody. You hear?"

"I won't."

"Anything gets bad and you go up to the attic and just wait for me."

"OK...Merle?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you for helping me."

"Hey, I love you. Take it easy today and I'll bring ya some clothes tonight."

"Be careful, baby. I love you."

When Merle left, Trinity got up and ate some cereal at his kitchen table and missed him already. He was risking so much for her and she had no way to repay him so she tied up her hair and worked all morning to clean his house.

She scrubbed the floors, dusted the living room and cleaned the windows. She wanted it to look spotless when he came home. She also looked in his freezer for something nice to make him for supper.

It was hard to get her head around the fact that the man she'd been watching working on the roof for all these weeks felt like her soul mate already. She wanted to be good to him and not bring him into her problems with the Greg but she had no idea how to avoid it.

 **##########################**

Merle worked through the heat and thought of her back at his house and it made him smile. It was ridiculous how much he felt for her already. The whole situation was doomed and destined for trouble but he couldn't resist wanting to help her and be with her.

The day was exhausting as ever and uneventful until his last coffee break when he noticed the brown stetson in his periphery.

The man waved him over and he had no idea how to approach it. What would be the best way for her?

Should he pretend he hardly knew her and was just being a nice guy to bail her out or should he pull tough guy and try to make a stand that he was her man? He had no idea.

"Hey there. Merle, right?"

"Yeah."

"I'm looking for a young woman and it's my understanding that you bailed her out of jail."

"Yeah. I don't know where she is though."

The man lit a cigarette and leaned against a pillar and just looked at him, waiting for him to crack a little.

"You left town with her in your truck, Merle, I know you did. Are you trying to tell me she isn't up at your farmhouse right now?"

The man smiled at him, like he thought he was very clever.

"Why do you want to find her so bad?" Merle asked, trying to play it cool cause he really didn't know what the hell to do.

"Look, I know she seems kinda sweet and everything but to be honest with you that woman's a whole lotta trouble."

"Is that right?"

"Oh yeah, she was our nanny and she's got a lot of problems. Taking drugs, stealing from us and trying to hit on me all the time. I had to fire her in the end. I'm sure she told you a different story but she's just one of those women that likes to tell stories and take advantage of people. You know the type."

"So why would you want to find her then? Sounds like you'd be happy to have her out of your hair," Merle noted. He knew just what game he was playing and he wasn't falling for it.

"I know I should be, right? But I'm kinda worried about her. I don't think she's stable and maybe she could use some legal help too. If she's staying with you then maybe you could bring her to the station tomorrow and I could help her out."

"I haven't seen her, I already told you."

"Is this really how you wanna play it, Merle?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about but if I see her I'll mention that you want to help her out."

This was just the kind of bullshit that made Merle really uncomfortable. He wanted to tell this guy to go fuck himself and that he could see right through his lies and that if he even thought of touching her he break every one of his fingers. The only thing stopping him was worrying what he might be able to do to Trinity in retaliation for his smart mouth. Merle still hadn't pieced together how they could get out of this mess so he wasn't trying to burn any bridges just yet.

Greg, the police chief, finished his smoke and smirked at him a final time.

"Just watch yourself, Merle. She looks real cute but you won't get nothing out of her...she a little tease and she'll just land you in a heap of trouble."

"You don't say."

"Yep! Just a little friendly advice, take it or leave it. Bring her in tomorrow, like I said...if you see her."

When he finally walked away Merle sighed heavily and paced the ground for a minute. This was no joke, the guy was fucking nuts.

Merle stopped by the local department store and picked up some clothes for Trinity, a toothbrush and some chocolate. He got in his truck and hoped like hell she'd have some idea what to do next.

When he pulled up at his house all looked calm and he saw movement through the kitchen window.

He knocked at the door for her to take the chain off and let him in.

"Hey you!" she beamed and wrapped her arms around his neck. The house was filled with the smell of roasted chicken, potatoes and gravy.

"Jesus, woman! Something smells good in here!"

He kissed her cheek and looked around at his spotless house and shook his head.

"You didn't have to do this, honey. I don't expect this kinda thing from ya."

"I wanted to, it kinda makes me feel like your little wifey," she teased and pulled him into her arms.

"I hate to ruin the mood, darlin'...but I got a talking to from that prick today."

Her face dropped and instantly he saw the fear again.

"I'm sorry, honey. I shouldn't have said anything about it now."

"It's OK. What did he say?"

"That you're a trouble making woman with a drug problem who's trying to take me for a ride. He wants me to take you in to the station tomorrow so he can 'help' you. I told him I ain't seen hide nor hair of ya but he doesn't believe me."

She sat down at the table and looked lost for a moment.

"I shouldn't have come back, you don't need this."

"Hey, don't talk like that. We're gonna figure this out. I got a brother in South Carolina, we could go crash with him till this blows over."

"Maybe...I wish I never took that damned job! I thought working for a cop would be a great way to avoid creeps but he's the biggest lunatic I ever met."

"I don't think I should leave you here alone anymore, he knows damn well you're here."

"You can't just not work though. I have your gun and I'll keep the doors locked," she said, checking on the food in the oven. Everything was ready so she took it out and served Merle a huge plate of food.

"Oh, baby! This is nice, honey. You sure didn't have to but thanks a lot just the same."

"Eat up, my man," she winked.

He made her sit down on the couch while he washed up the dishes. He gave her the bag of clothes he bought and was glad it was all the right size cause he had completely guessed.

"You wanna come for a shower?" he asked when he was done cleaning up.

"I'd love to."

He adored her, everything about her and when he got her in his old bathroom up the stairs with the claw foot tub he undressed her like she was a gift.

He was right back to slow and when he pulled her shirt over her head she closed her eyes as he kissed her neck.

"I'm so glad I hit your truck," she whispered.

"Me too," he answered, kissing his way from one shoulder to the other moving across her chest. "I could make love to you every single day."

She grinned and ran her fingers into his hair. She pulled his shirt off and they gradually got undressed to get under the water.

She crept in behind him to kiss his back.

Her hands wrapped around his waist and she held him close to her body, pressing her lips to his wet skin.

Merle lay his hands on the tile in front of him and just took in the feeling of her body against his, it felt so right. He was sure he believed in fate in that moment. There was no other explanation for how close he felt to her, like they were two halves of one soul. If anyone had said this could happen to him a week ago he would have laughed himself silly but she was supposed to be with him and he trusted it completely.

Her hands moved down the front of his body and she touched him, taking him in her warm wet hand as she kept on kissing his back.

"Tell me you're my man," she whispered, stroking his dick slowly. This seemed to be something she liked to hear and he'd say it every day if she wanted.

"I'm yours, honey, and you're mine...right?"

He turned around and she smiled, pressing him to the tile and standing on her toes to kissed him. The air was full of steam and his arms enveloped her, like he couldn't get close enough.

"I'm yours, baby," she said finally.

He pulled her wet thigh up along his hip and pressed his body against hers as she panted in the foggy air. He held one hand against the wall and entered her slow like honey dripping from a spoon.

She gasped softly and then groaned, pulling him closer.

Shower sex was trickier than he though, it worked for a while as a tease at least but he needed her on his bed. He wrapped her in a towel and threw her over his shoulder as she squealed all the way down the stairs that he was going to drop her.

Her body was still damp as he lay her down in the middle of his bed and turned on the lamp on the night stand. He wanted to see her in good light.

He pulled her towel off and just looked at her for a minute, trying to figure out why she was in his bed.

"You're so beautiful...just look at you," he sighed.

"Come here," she smiled, opening her arms to him.

"I bet you get all kinds of men chasing after you, huh?" he said, laying down in her arms and kissing her lips. He still had his towel around his waist and she grabbed it and tossed it on the floor.

"I don't care about anything like that. I had my eyes on you for a while and I got you now, I got just what I wanted."

"Why didn't you ever say hi?" he asked.

"Was hard to when I only ever saw you up on the roof."

"I guess so. I think I would have stuttered like a moron if you talked to me out of the blue anyway so it's a good thing you didn't."

"We met the way we were supposed to, see? It was fate cause you just walked right up to me like it was nothing and yelled at me," she laughed.

"Don't remind me. Can I make it up to you?" he asked, climbing on top of her and nudging his knees between hers.

"Oh yes, please," she purred.

Merle slid his hand under her head and slipped his tongue into her mouth, turning his head to the side.

Her feet came up to rest on his lower back and he knew she had the upper hand and always would. Her soft, wet pussy right beneath his throbbing dick was too damn much to resist.

She lay her hands on his face and he closed his eyes, moving against her, trying to hold back from just thrusting into her.

"Do it, baby..." she whispered.

"I will...but I wanna take care of you first."

He moved down her body, inch by precious inch, trailing a string of kisses over her skin that he hoped would keep her in his arms forever.

She took control and rolled on top of him suddenly and teased him with her wetness as he hissed, pulling her mouth to his.

There was nothing like her touch but it was more than sex for him, she made him feels things he never had before.

Coming home to someone making him supper and just looking so happy to see his face was something he had no idea he needed so badly but he needed it now like oxygen.

The way her eyes lit up just to see him made him weak, he didn't think he could mean this much to anyone.

She rolled her hips over his body and pulled him up to a sitting position. He ran his hands under her ass and pulled her onto him and she let out a mournful moan.

"Oh god...Mmmm..."

She moved and held him right against her, kissing his throat with abandon and grinding her body swiftly.

They were both sweating in the heat and desperate to please each other and themselves, they were the only two people on the planet. Only strangers a few days before, he didn't know idea why he'd die for her but he knew he would willingly.

He held onto her back with one hand and her ass with the other like he couldn't get her close enough and she rode him and kissed him hard. Making love to her got better every time it happened and he couldn't get enough of just kissing her or looking at her smiling face...he was taken.

Love like this had to be dangerous but he was running full force into it with her right by his side. He'd never found fatalism romantic before. He sat there in high school, cursing Romeo and Juliet for being so god damn blind but here he was just the same.

The reaper of love had come knocking and it couldn't go off without a hitch. It felt so damned good that surely a price had to be paid and the chief wasn't going to stop without a fight.


	4. Chapter 4

*** just in case you don't already know, a slough is a small body of water typically found on farmland. They are anywhere from 20X20 feet to larger ones even double that size. Sloughs are just standing water and usually the water is very dark in color and kinda green, you definitely can't see down to the bottom at all. I didn't really know what one was before I lived in a rural area and it's important for this chapter to know what that is so...yeah:) Enjoy!**

 *** TRIGGER WARNING FOR VIOLENCE (but if you watch TWD this is probably nothing to you, cause there's much worse on the show:)**

 **##########################################**

That night he decided they couldn't stay and give that lunatic a chance to hurt her or tear them apart. Merle didn't trust him and he had too much power to let it rest the way it was. If he wanted to he could get her in custody and then there's no way Merle could stop him from messing with her.

He could always give the farm to his brother to sell or live in, it could stay in the family but he couldn't stay there and he couldn't be without her.

He sat next to the bed and watched her sleep in the middle of the night, he needed to think. Merle planned to pack up his truck with the few things he didn't want to be without but he'd have to go to town to quit his job and get all his money out of the bank which would mean leaving her for a little while.

He didn't know what else to do. If she went to court for the bullshit drug charge she'd end up in danger of being stuck under his control and Merle wouldn't even risk it.

He never had anyone in his adult life that he loved and now that he had her he wasn't losing her.

When he finally settled his mind on his plan he crawled in behind her and pulled her into his arms. She didn't wake up but she moaned softly and pushed her body back against him.

He knew then that it didn't matter what he had to do, he wasn't letting that son of a bitch have the last word or keep them apart.

Merle yawned and closed his eyes, listening to the gentle sound of her breathing.

They could get in his old truck and just drive till they reached South Carolina and he could introduce her to his brother Daryl, it could be perfect.

He woke up to her squealing at the top of her lungs and it scared the life out of him.

"MERLE! HELP!"

It was a high pitched, child-like shriek that took years off his life.

"Trinity! Where are ya?"

It was still fairly dark and the sound was coming from up stairs, he was sure of it. He was heading up the stairs and he suddenly had a pretty good idea by her girly whining and sobbing what it was.

He stood in the doorway of the bathroom and grinned at her, standing on the ledge of the bathtub, staring at a spider on the floor.

"Baby, it's huge...help!"

"Really? Just a spider? I thought you were in danger," he laughed, grabbing some toilet paper to kill it.

"Don't kill it!" she whined.

"What do ya want then, darlin'? You wanna throw it a tea party?" he chuckled.

He'd never seen anything quite this cute.

Eventually he had to catch the damn thing in a cup and let it outside. It was only 5:30 in the morning and he was glad to still have time to get her back in bed for a cuddle.

"Thanks, I'm really sorry about that. I know I'm silly but they terrify me."

"I don't mind, honey. You ever need to be rescued from spiders, I'm your man," he laughed, rolling over her and kissing his neck.

"I sure hope you never change your mind about being my man cause I need you," she answered, looking into his eyes and winking.

"I don't know much but I know my own heart and I want you, honey."

"I don't know where I'd be if I didn't hit your truck the other day," she mused.

"Was gonna happen no matter what," he grinned. "Just like you said, it was fate."

"That's right, fate," she agreed, kissing him.

"Like all these years I was here all by myself it's cause I was supposed to meet you the other day. I like the sound of that," he smiled, leaning his head against her shoulder.

"So what are we going to do?" she asked.

"We're gonna go. I can't stand to have you here and end up in court where that prick can get the upper hand, it's too risky."

"Where will we go?" she asked.

"We can just take off and drive to my brother's place. Nobody here knows nothing about where he lives so it'll be perfect."

"What about your life, Merle?"

"I never had nothing here to lose anyway. I can get another job and this place'll still be here when it all blows over. I gotta do this, I'm sure about it. You're my life now."

She sighed and decided it was pointless to argue and he was right, staying just put them both in a position where Greg would be a problem.

"So in a couple hours I'm going to town to get my last check, quit my job and drain my bank and then we're out of here. You wanna come away with me, right?"

"Of course. I'd go anywhere with you," she insisted.

"Great, cause I need ya now. You wanna get a little more sleep?" he asked, pulling the blanket over her.

"Love to."

 **#######################**

Merle left her with his gun, pulled all the curtains, locked all the doors and told her again not to open the door to anyone.

He asked her to go through the pack up anything she wanted to take and said he'd be back in a couple hours.

Merle had only one person in town he trusted to take over his property while he was gone but he didn't even tell him where he was going or with who. Axel was the only guy at work he really talked to and he'd lived in the area his whole life. Axel didn't even ask where he was going or when he'd be back but he took the keys to his family farm and agreed to keep the place up till he got back. Merle said he could stay there and do what he wanted with it till he returned.

He quit his job, stopped by the bank and closed his account and he felt alive. Nothing about it felt rational but it all felt right. They could go see Daryl and start a new life together and she'd be safe. He picked up a few things at the department store for the trip so they wouldn't have to stop as often on their way.

It was like an adventure and he was excited at the prospect of having someone to love all the time. He knew Daryl would like her and he'd be happy to see him too. He hadn't seen Daryl in three years and it was about time he visited.

The best part of all was that he was only a few hours away from getting her away from that asshole. He only had a few more loose ends to tie up and they'd be home free.

 **########################**

Trinity explored the old farmhouse all morning and found so many things of interest. There were objects in the house that belonged to Merle as a child and she collected a few to just sit and look at them.

She spend some time upstairs in his childhood bedroom looking at his old baseball glove, an award for high school football, a valentine card from a girl he dated as a kid and some old books and pictures. Every single thing that told her something more about him was of great interest.

Nobody ever made love to her before him. He showed her what love was and as ridiculous as it would look to any outsider she believed it, just like he did, that it was fate. The way she loved him was intense and it made no logical sense on paper because it was a feeling, not math.

She just knew how he made her feel and that's all that mattered.

In his arms she felt important and adored. Trinity mattered to him and she knew it, she couldn't wait to be able to show him how much he mattered to her. She wanted to be his wife and make him breakfast every morning and have his babies.

She smiled, just thinking about being pregnant. She didn't even think much about children until she lay eyes on him for the first time up on that roof. She fantasized about all kinds of things as she watched him and, while most of it was sexual, she also thought of marrying him. She hadn't had a crush since she was a girl but she'd been taken with him right away. Now that she had him and he loved her too, fate was easy to believe in.

She gathered a few things she wanted to keep with them and packed them into a box. He mentioned that there were plastic bins in the basement for packing stuff in but she was leaving it for a while, she dreaded the country spiders that were surely down there.

Trinity put on a record while she got everything ready, he'd be back soon and they'd be free. Just the two of them on the highway heading off to start a new life together. She couldn't remember being this excited, not since she was little.

Elvis started singing _Love me Tender_ and she smiled, thinking she'd have to take the record as well. She wanted to dance with Merle to it when they got their own place.

She walked on a cloud all the way down the stairs into the basement, singing along and running her hand against the wall feeling for the light switch.

 ** _Love me tender  
Love me long  
Take me to your heart  
For it's there that I belong  
And we'll never part_**

 ** _Love me tender  
Love me true  
All my dreams fulfilled  
For my darlin' I love you  
And I always will_**

 **#######################**

When she opened her eyes again she was on the concrete in the dark and her hands and ankles were bound. Her mouth was gagged with a filthy bandanna that tasted of motor oil.

"There she is! There's the little trouble maker."

She heard a voice in the dark and she knew instantly it was him. Who else would it be? She rolled onto her side and blood dripped into her eyes and she panicked. Her head was cut and bleeding onto the concrete next to her and she saw those damn boots.

She made a wincing sound as she looked up at him.

"I knew you'd be here. I didn't think you'd be fucking him but I can tell from the look of things up there that you have been. I just knew you'd be giving it up to somebody, you slut!"

She shook her head, because she couldn't speak and had no idea what he wanted to hear. She sensed he was going to kill her, he looked insane. She found herself hoping Merle wouldn't come home till it was done, getting him shot too would be the ultimate loss.

She tried to breathe some fresh air that didn't smell of oil but it was in her mouth and nose, that awful smell and taste.

"I gave you a chance to come back and play nice but you had to run. I told you that you couldn't run, didn't I?"

She nodded and tried to illicit some kind of sympathy but he was cold and she knew it was over for her.

The record player started to play _I can't help falling in love with you_ and she started to cry, thinking of Merle.

Maybe Elvis would be the last thing she ever heard.

Greg walked over and knelt down beside her and touch her bleeding head and she flinched.

"I really caught ya in the head there," he smirked. "Won't matter soon though."

He pulled her shirt up and she cringed at the knowledge that he was very likely going to make her suffer before he ended it. He said he'd kill her if she ran but she hoped it was an empty threat. She thought, surely a man with a family wouldn't kill a woman just for turning him down...

 ** _Take my hand, take my whole life too_**

 ** _For I can't help, falling in love with you..._**

All she could think of was Merle kissing her and telling her he was her man and that he loved her. Why did she have to find him and then lose it all like this?

She felt Greg's mouth on her throat but her eyes were closed and she was trying to separate her mind from her body before it got worse.

She cried and pictured Merle's face. She tried not to feel anything as the chief touched her and Elvis sang a love song.

Trinity stiffened as he ran his hand down her chest and he must have been insulted because he smacked her face hard and then his cold hands were on her throat.

She finally opened her eyes and saw Merle grab his forehead and slit his throat. A flash of red trickled down and her scream was muffled by the oily rag.

Merle's eyes were black with rage and he pushed the chief's gurgling body off of her. He cut the bandanna from her mouth and tossed it on Greg's now silent corpse.

"Merle!" she cried, reaching her bound arms up to him.

"Shhhh...it's over...shh..."

Merle scooped her up in his arms and sat on the concrete, holding her head to his chest.

She couldn't stop shaking and crying but, in his arms, she knew she was safe. He cut the tape from her wrists and ankles and eventually she started to breathe somewhat normally again.

"What are we going to do, Merle?"

"Don't you worry...I got it covered," he insisted.

"How?" she persisted. "We're gonna go to jail, Merle. Then we'll never be together...I can't lose you!"

"You listen to me, honey, nobody's going to jail."

He picked her up and walked her up the stairs into the kitchen and poured them both a scotch.

"Drink that, darlin'," he said, handing her the glass.

He grabbed a washcloth and wet it with warm water and cleaned the blood from her face.

"Hold it there for a minute where you're bleeding, honey."

"I didn't open the door, I swear."

"He must have come in the basement window, it ain't your fault. He brought his personal vehicle and parked it way down the road next to the slough. I saw a car there when I was coming back and I had a feeling...there's never vehicles out here."

"What do we do, Merle?"  
"We push it in the slough...with him in it."

"When?"

"Now, before anyone sees the car, and then we get the fuck outta here. Nobody knows he was after you, right?"

"You're the only person I told and I doubt he'd tell anyone," she answered.

Trinity thought of the body down in the basement and started to shake again.

"Stay put," Merle said, leaning down to kiss her lips. "I had to kill him...you know that, right?"

"Of course, Merle. I love you."

"I love you, honey."

He headed down the stairs to roll the body in plastic and toss it in the bed of his truck. There was very little traffic down his section of the grid road but he had to get this done before someone saw Greg's car.

"Baby, I need you to do something and I hate to ask but we don't have time to mess around," he panted when he got done dragging the body up.

"Anything," she uttered.

"Grab the bleach under the sink and clean up the blood down there. Then throw all the rags in a plastic bag and we'll burn it later."

"Got it," she nodded.

She cleaned everything up as best she could while Merle got rid of the body and the car and she wondered if her hands would ever stop shaking. Soon Merle was back and insisted that everything went fine.

"I just sat him in the driver's seat, put the belt on him and pushed it in. I threw the bottle of scotch in there too. Maybe if they find him they'll think he was just drink...fuck, I don't know!"

"He's definitely a drinker so that's possible," she nodded, still trembling.

It was getting to Merle now, he wasn't a killer but there was no way out for them...for her.

The truck was swiftly packed and they got in, both convinced they'd be picked up by the cops in no time.

Three hours later they were still free and halfway to South Carolina.

Trinity held his hand the whole way and she knew he was reliving it over and over in his mind.

"I'm so sorry, Merle. I'm sorry it came to this."

"Was meant to be, honey. It was fate," he insisted, with his eyes staring straight ahead at the road. "Just...tell me you can still love me now."

"Of course I can. Always," she assured him, sliding closer to in the truck to hold him.

They only stopped for gas and to burn the one bag of evidence at an abandoned campground.

When they pulled up at Daryl's house finally they both vowed they'd never mention it to anyone as long as they lived or even discuss it in private.

 **#############################**

 **~ 1 month later~**

"Hey, baby!" Merle grinned as she walked into their bedroom at Daryl's house. They'd found a house but weren't moving in for another week.

Trinity was in her waitress uniform and looked a little out of sorts.

"What's up?" he asked, pulling her onto the bed.

She pulled a piece of folded up paper out of her apron and handed it to him.

 _The body of local police chief, Greg Schumer, was discovered north of town on Monday. The death has been ruled a death by misadventure by the county coroner. All in town are grieving the loss of a beloved husband, father, public servant and friend. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the local humane society. A public service is to be held on Thursday at St. James United Church at 2pm._

Merle looked up at her and shook his head.

"It's over?"

Trinity smiled and nodded to him.

"It's over...but I'm never going back there."

"You got that right! Come here!"

He didn't care if he ever saw the farm again, all he wanted was her.

He kissed her hard and got up to lock their door. There was no news until now and they never discussed it but here it was, the last nail in the coffin. They could live now.

She pulled his shirt over his head and took his face in her hands.

"Tell me I'm not a bad man," he pleaded, looking into her green eyes.

"I'd be dead if you hadn't done it and you likely saved another woman the same misery, probably his wife too. You're a good man, you're my man," she pressed, pulling him down to kiss her mouth.

"Make love to me, baby," she whispered, unzipping her uniform and squirming out of it.

The stress of what they'd been a party to had weighed heavily on their minds and now they were really free.

She reached for the fly of his pants and undid them, sliding her hand inside to touch him.

He hissed and took her head in the crook of his arm. Merle kissed her forehead and neck as she moved her hand on his dick, making him instantly hard for her.

It was fast now, they just wanted to make up for lost time and start living.

He rolled her over and unfastened her bra, then kissed from the back of her neck to her tailbone.

He pushed her legs apart and continued to kiss her back and touch her through her underwear by reaching his hand under her body.

"Mmmm...yeah..." she moaned. "Just take me, baby."

He couldn't agree more with her decided course of action so he stripped her of her panties and pulled her onto her knees.

"Please..." she whispered.

He entered her and wrapped his arms around her waist pulling her up to a vertical position to kiss her neck. She moved her body back into him and raised her arm to run her fingers through his hair.

"Tell me you're my man," she gasped as he leaned forward and started to fuck her harder on her hands and knees with her hips up high to meet each thrust.

"I'm your man, always..." he groaned.

She touched herself as he gave her everything he had and she was so close.

"Cum with me," she sighed.

He lay his hands on her back and fucked a little slower as he reached his peak.  
"You there?" he inquired, holding back with all he had.

"Yeah...do it, baby..."

They came together, panting and almost laughing they were so happy.

He collapsed beside her on the bed and kissed her furiously, wrapping her in his arms. Merle had spend the entire last month convinced that the cops would turn up at the door and take him away from her.

"So we can do it now?" she asked, looking hopefully into his eyes.

"Yeah...we can do it," he nodded, kissing the top of her head and covering her in the sheet.

"I can't believe it's over...everything is going to be perfect," she beamed.

"You know, this whole plan of yours for having a baby is nice and all but you didn't even propose to me or nothin' yet," he teased.

"Do you want me to?" she laughed.

"Nah...I got it."

He sat up and rolled out of bed. He dug around in the closet for a lock box with a combination.

He found what he was looking for and crawled back into bed. He took her hand and grinned at her, that grin she loved so much.

"I never wanted anyone else like I want you and I never will. You know there's nothing I wouldn't do for you and I'll love you forever. You're supposed to be mine-"

"And you're supposed to be mine," she interrupted.

"That's right, it's fate. So you'll marry me then?"

"Definitely," she squealed, falling into his arms as he handed over his mother's engagement ring.

~ _The End ~_


End file.
